Enabling Beliefs

How we believe drives our actions, often rather more than natural truths.
Indeed, in many of our decisions we have limited information and have to rely on
belief, even if it is weak, to guide our choices. What and how we believe
consequently has a huge impact on what we do and whether we succeed.

Enabling beliefs are...

Many of us have limiting beliefs which
hold us back in life. Yet we can also have enabling beliefs that help us
forward. Enabling beliefs are not foolish beliefs. If I believed I could fly,
then I probably would not last long. Enabling beliefs lead to growth, success
and happiness.

Just as limiting beliefs are often avoidance in disguise, enabling beliefs
may well lead to people taking risks, which may sometimes lead to failure. Yet
enabling beliefs must also get you through failure, recovering, learning and
carrying on. It is only through risk that we make progress.

Types of enabling belief

There are several types of enabling belief.

Probability

Example: This might work. So it's worth giving it a go.

Most people are naturally optimistic, believing good things will happen
beyond what chance dictates. While of course you can be over-optimistic, it is
better to be hopeful and believe that good things will happen than to be
depressively pessimistic. Evolution has made us this way because getting out
there and trying gives an infinitely better chance of succeeding and growing than not trying
at all.

When you are optimistic you have a more cheerful disposition, which
influences others to like you and help you more. Optimistic people are more
resilient and will pick themselves up, dust themselves down and get on with
things -- without any permanent loss in optimism.

Ability

Example: I can get there. I just need to keep going.

A common limiting belief is 'I cannot...'. When you believe you are not able
then you will be unlikely to try. And even if you do, the limiting belief of
inability will undermine you and may well precipitate failure. Even if you
succeed, there is a tendency to sustain the limiting belief by attributing the
success to luck.

Better is to believe you can do pretty much anything, to have confidence in
your own ability to succeed. If you believe you can, then you have a far better
chance of getting there.

Having said this, it would be arrogant to believe you could just pick up an
instrument and play like a virtuoso, so 'can do' beliefs must be moderated to
allow for practice, failure and learning. If you believe 'I can play this well
if I keep practicing' then you will likely succeed. Belief in your own
resilience and ability to learn are consequently very powerful enabling beliefs.

Existence

Example: I'm intelligent. If I work hard, I can learn most things.

A variant on the limiting belief 'I cannot...' is 'I am not...' ( or maybe 'I am' someone who
does not). Framing yourself as a person who does not do certain things is a
great excuse for inaction.

The reversal of this is to create enabling beliefs that say 'I am' something
that will help you, such as 'I am friendly' or 'I am determined'. Our sense of
identity is hugely important to us and 'I
am' statements directly reflect our constructed self. This can make existence
beliefs hard to change, but it also makes them very powerful.

Respect

Example: I am a person who accepts others as they are. This will lead to
me having many good friends.

Some people believe that others do not like them and judge them harshly. As a
result they act in defensive ways or avoid other people, either of which will
limit them.

It is a more effective belief that you are likeable, liked and respected.
This is not the same as believing you are superior, which can lead to people not
liking you. Better is to start with self-respect and believing yourself equal
with others. From this platform you can talk and interact with confidence and
without fear.

So what?

Do a personal review of limiting beliefs and then find ways to eliminate
these or convert them to enabling beliefs. You can also look for other enabling
beliefs to adopt.

Work hard at believing. A good way is to get out there and force yourself to
do things. Start with the belief that you can learn and much will follow.

You can also help others by looking for the beliefs that hold them back and
encouraging them to adopt enabling beliefs.